Ernest Hemingway and Fidel Castro, June 11, 1961
“The first time I went back to Havana after Castro’s triumph, I was introduced to him by Ernest Hemingway….He said, ‘You know that this revolution in Cuba is a good revolution.’ Well, I knew that it was a good revolution, because I had been to Cuba when Batista was in power….He was a horrifying sadist. The United States, in my opinion, made a drastic error. If only they had appreciated the possibility of a détente. Castro was, after all, a gentleman, and well educated. It would have been quite possible for Cuba to have been drawn amiably into our orbit where Cuba naturally belongs, but our State Department chose instead to oust Mr. Castro. Consequently, we made an enemy of Cuba and Cuba turned toward Russia for support. This had not happened when I met Hemingway. Anyhow, Hemingway wrote me a letter of introduction to Castro. Kenneth Tynan and I went to the palace. Castro was having a cabinet session at the time….After about a three-hour wait, the door was thrown open and we were ushered in. Castro greeted us warmly. When Kenneth Tynan introduced me, the Generalissimo said, ‘Oh, that cat,’ meaning Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, which surprised me—delighted me, of course….Then he proceeded to introduce us to all of his cabinet ministers. We were given coffee and liqueurs and it was a lovely occasion.”
-Tennessee Williams, excerpt from his Memoirs (1975).
